This information has been provided by
Australian law firm, Australian Conveyancing Services and is applicable in New South Wales
only.
In Australia the whole legal transaction of buying/selling a property is called ‘Conveyancing’. The law sees the transfer of ownership in a property as important, and there is a process that must be followed by the Seller and the
Buyer.
This process is normally more involved for the Buyer than the Seller. The Buyer has to make sure that the Title to the property is clear and this is an important task, as it involves doing various searches of the property. Also the Buyer is responsible for drafting up the transfer documentation and stamping it, as well as organizing their finances.
The things that you as a Buyer will do as part of a normal conveyance for New
South Wales property includes:
Entering into a Contract of
Sale - this is called the 'exchange of contracts'. You need to ensure that any special conditions that you need in the Contract are inserted.
The Seller (through their Solicitor/Conveyancer) will
have the Contract prepared for you to consider. It is
advisable that you arrange for your Solicitor/Conveyancer
to look over the Contract before you sign.
For more information on the exchange of Contracts
(including gazumping), see our article below entitled When
can the Buyer change their Mind?
If you are doing your Conveyance through Quicklaw, a Lawyer can look over your Contract
for a small additional fee.
Fulfilling the Buyer conditions that are included in your contract.
Talking with your Financier to make sure you get any moneys you are borrowing by the settlement date, and signing mortgage documents.
Arranging the necessary searches over the property
Drafting the transfer documents.
If you are thinking about
buying a property, please consider using our online
conveyancing service. The service is fully interactive and
includes full information on how to arrange the above
requirements. You can access the service 24 hours a day!
For more information, click
here.
If you are using the
Quicklaw DIY conveyancing service, our award winning program drafts the documents for you,
based on your responses and you can have them checked by
your Lawyer Support for a small additional fee.
Stamping the transfer
documents.
Attending at settlement to hand over the balance purchase price and to get various documents you need to transfer the ownership (if you have a Financier, they will attend at settlement as well and take these documents on your behalf)·
Go to the Titles Office and lodge your documents for registration of the transfer of ownership (if you have a Financier, they will do this on your behalf).
